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| Marine Le Pen: Rise of the Far Right in France and European Parliament elections Latuff |
This year is full of elections taking place literally around the world. The West African country of Guinea-Bissau recently elected a new President Jose Maria Voz in a run off election. Guinea-Bissau is often unfortunately painted as a the country of coups compared to its neighbors. The country recently experienced a military takeover of the government in 2012. The recent presidential win by President elect Voz is the first national elections since the military's arrival into office. Not to far from Guinea-Bissau, is Afric'a first independent Republic and a totem pole of African Democracy, Republic of Liberia. Senatorial elections are scheduled for October this year. The National Election Commission or the NEC meticulously monitors and administers electoral laws and elections within Liberia at the national and county levels. In Egypt, the military regime is hosting national elections although the Egyptian people are weary of the amount of fairness at the polls and ballots. Central African Republic replaced its interim President Katherine Samba-Panza with a new president elect while Malawi held its presidential and parliamentary elections on May 20th.
Fascistas cometh in high office and football fields
Arundhati Roy on Narendra Modi and Hindu nationalism
The anxiety of fascist revival at the national levels rises to red when one examines the results of the recent European Union parliamentary elections where far right, fascist leaning, anti-austerity and Euro skeptical parliamentarians and political organizations won a huge landslide to the surprise of the pundits but not to society frustrated with economic crisis, the bumpy yet smooth economic stabilization of BRICS countries and expanding middle classes or the slow decline of the West specifically of US hegemonic power in an increasing multipolar world. The Front National who thirty five years ago were at the margins of French political life have been gaining political power through local elections and seats in the EU parliament and among voters. Switzerland known for its neutrality in most of the world's conflicts and home to some of the world's major international organization recently voted to retract an anti Nazi salute law that would've made public displays of the Nazi salute punishable by fines and prison terms. The weak reasoning for recanting the law was the rule that Nazi salute isn't always offensive in certain circumstances. The Nazi salute is a symbol recognized across the world for the destruction of human lives caused by fascism and racism given an inch and mile to grow in a small amount of time. Some well known football stars have been banned for life from playing football due to Nazi gestures. Greece's Giorgos Katidis who first tried to play off the fact that he didn't know what the salute meant. In fascism's birthplace Italy, the football club SS Lazio's star player Paolo Di Canio and Di Canio is noted for declaring himself a fascist without batting an eye. His former team SS Lazio is also infamous for its connection to Mussolini as a personal favorite and propaganda tool for Fascist Italy. Lazio ultras are regarded as the most notorious football skinheads and hooligans in Europe for not only their pro fascist displays and defenses but for their violence towards away clubs and opposing fans and anti-antisemitism both indirect and direct. Other football clubs in Croatia, Poland, Ukraine also share similar distinctions with SS Lazio and its fan base. Fascism and football have often gone hand and hand in Italy, Germany, Chile and Argentina to promote the fascist ideology among the people by the political leaders in economic hardship and depressions.
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